Dental polisher



Nov. 29, 1932. R, WEST 1,889,494

DENTAL POLI SHER Filed sept. 12. 195o mommy Patented Nov. 2.9, 1932VVV PATENT oFFICE i L Y HARRYR. rnrnsnon Lonnolvvnnn, 01110 'i f DENTAL yPoLIsI-Inrt j i e lApplication niedvsepremteiiz, i930.. semi Ng. 481,552.` i

This invention" relates to dental polishers of the power driven typeusedby dentistsfand has for an obj ectvto provide a polisher which i A. will have a stem or shank reinforced to with-l l stand breaking ,when considerable pressure is applied and which will eniploy'a single unitary solid tuft of stiffboar bristles or badger hair or the like which will remain rigid under the' great pressure used to polish and clean teeth. j

polishing the teeth by power drivenapparatus have bristles whiohbend or have a hinge eifect when pressureis applied and thus beent, that is, absence of any hinge effect what- Y come quickly in'eective for cleaning poli ishing teeth and alsospread apart and become irregular so that jagged outstanding bristles are presented to injure the gums and soft membranes and tissues of the mouth. Also polishing compounds containing vmore or less grit or stone or similar abrasive materialmust be used to' compensate for the hinge action of the bristles. To overcome both of these difficulties the present invention employs akrigid stiff compact unitaryv bristle element which will retain its contour las well as the length and thickness thereof intact under pressure up to twenty pounds, and more, which great pressure is necessary to bring forth the'natural luster and polish of the teeth. At the same time such pressure, entirely too great to be withstood by ordinary mechanical cleaners and polishers now in use, obviates the-,necessity of the use of abrasives which grind away the enamel which is none too thick at best. `f Bylvirtue of the shape retaining action of the bristle compon- Usually` the cleaners and polishers used by dentists for mechanically cleaning and appended claim without departing from the v spirit Or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention; y

In the accompanying drawing forming part'of this specification, v g

iFigure l 's a side elevation of a dental polisherconstruc-ted' inv accordance with myu Y invention, i t Y i Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view through the-'dental polisher, Y.

Fig. 3 is-a side elevation,partly broken away, showing a modified form of the invention, and i Y i Fig. .4 is a side .elevation,partly broken away, showing still another-modification of the invention. i Y

Referringv now to the drawing in which like characters of reference designate similar parts in the various views, the dental polisher is shown to comprise a shank 10 which termi- 70 nates in a vhead or socket 1l, both the shank and socket preferablybeing formed of hard rubber so as not to injure the gums, and pref-V erably= the socket is reinforced axially by a stimetal rod 12'. in the chuck or hand piece of the dental engine in the usual manner .and by virtueof the central stifening core or rod 12, it is resistant to buckling or breaking when the great pressures attended Vupon the use of the device are imparted.

'y The bristle component lcomprises a single unitary compact stifftuft 13 of boar bristles, badger hair, fiber bristles or other suitable rigid stiff unyielding material so compactly assembled as to practically resist penetration of a pin or needle thrust into the structure. In ordinary practice,'the bristles are securely bound together and firmly embedded in a hard rubber base llathat is, the bristles are 90,

rubber "set to positively prevent any change in cross dimension of the bristle component` Ordinarily, the bristle component projects about 35 to 1A, of an'inch above the baseV and iseabout one-fourth inch wide, or sub stantially the same 'in width' as the ;length of the projecting portion of the bristle component or tuft. In practice, the unitary stiff assembly of rigid bristles resists distortion fromeither longitudinalv dimension or trans- The shank is receivable 75 verse dimension under pressure up to and beyond twenty pounds and exhibits no hinge effect or bending eect whatsoever as is customary With the usual bristle equipped polishing tools used by dentists with power apparatus.

It Will be specifically pointed out that ordinarily the bristle component is fastened to the shank component by rivets or staples or similar devices which are prone to break even under the light pressures applied in the usual practice and present the hazard of injury to the gums or sott tissues ot the mouth. To positively obviate accidental displacement of the bristle component from the shank component, in the present invention, I preterably drive the base 14 into the socket 11 with considerable pressure, that is, the parts having a driving lit so that relative movement ot the same is positively prevented. Furthermore, to make sure that accidental displacement oiE the parts Will not occur While in use, a pin 15 is passed through the socket member 11 and through the base member 11i to couple these parts rigidly in a single unitary non-distortable structure.

rlhe bristle component constructed as above described needs no abrasive material to restore the high and natural polish and luster of the teeth, since the abnormally great pressure which the tool Will Twithstand when in use serves to eilectively remove inucin iilm, stains, tartar and the like Without the use of injurious abrasives which in time Will destroy the enamel of the teeth.

In Figures 3 and l there are shown modified forms of the invention, the same varying somewhat in shape and size as to the bristle component 'to adapt the device for various conditions of service. In F ig. 3 the bristle component 16 is of considerable ividth or cross diameter and is embedded or rubber et in a hard rubber base 17 which is forced into a socket member 18 and coupled thereto by a pin 19. T he socket member is provided with an axial shank 20 which is axially reinforced to withstand buckling or breakage by means of a metal bar 2l.

In Figure 4s the bristle component 22 is illustrated as bullet shaped or substantially conical. 'Ille bristle component is also in this modification rubber set or embedded in t hard rubber base 23 which is driven into a socket 24- and rigidly connected thereto by a pin Ill e socket is rounded exteriorly at the base thereof `to conform in streamline to the bristle compenent. rIhe socket terminates in an axial shank 26 Which is centrally reinforced longitudinally by a metal rod 27.

In both the preferred 'term and the modified form of the invention, the socket member and shank is formed of a single integral piece of material, preferably hard rubber, so that injury to the gums will be prevente should the tool slip during the cleaning and polishing operation.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

A dentists tooth cleaning and polishing tool comprising a shank adapted to be received in the chuck of a dental engine and terminating in a socket, a single short Wide unitary cylindrical tutt of stift' bristles, a hardened plastic base for said tutt disposed in said socket and permanently clamping said bristles in intimate contact With each other hroughout their entire length, said tutt projecting about 33E to l/L beyond the socket and being about the same in Width as the length ot the projecting portion whereby spreading apart of the bristles at their eX- posed ends under great pressure is prevented.

In testimony whereof I aiiiX my signature.

imm-zr n. rainsr. [La] 

